Zimbabwe Travel Guide

Adventurous Self Traveller? Get off the beaten track in Zim.

Zimbabwe? Are you mad?! You'll get killed!

That was pretty much the standard answer when we told people that we were spending our summer holiday in Zim. We being me, my wife, my Father in Law and two children, 8 and 10. My wife had been born there "back in the day" and so we were making a trip down memory lane as well as spending some time in South Africa and Botswana.

Our first exposure to Zim was the border crossing at Beitbridge. We had been warned it would be difficult and would take a while to get through. Three and a half torturous hours later (including the time and cash it took to temporarily import our hire car and write down the serial numbers of the money we paid our visa fees with) and we were in country.

We spent some time visiting old haunts and so it was a few days before our first trip to a national park proper, Matopas (also known as Matobo). As always with national parks in Zim we were met at a guarded gate by a pair of uniformed officials. And as always they were friendly, polite and honest - one enthused about how wonderful it was that we had come all the way from Ireland to his country and the other listing all the Irish soccer players he knew! Once we had found out that we supported the same team we were friends for life!

We made the well worn trek up to the heights to visit Rhodes grave and were rewarded with some of the most spectacular views across raw bush that looked like it hadn't changed in thousands of years and from there we followed the route through the park recommended by my new best buddies at the gate. The viewing was partly restricted by the time of day but we saw the usual small game - impala in particular are very common in the area. Other than that we had some close encounters with giraffe and several large herds of elephants, including at least two nursing mothers. The scenery in the park itself was also outstanding - the trip down around the dam is a must. One warning though - many of the roads are tar but we branched off onto the "Scenic Route" which was a dirt track and it quickly deteriorated to the point where our standard jeep couldn't go on and we had to turn in the bush - a larger 4x4 such as a Land Cruiser could have coped but do be wary if you are in anything smaller (we were in an X-Trail). I have been told by several people that the largest concentration of wild leopard in the world are in the park but we didn't see any.

We then carried on to Antelope Park, a lion rehabilitation centre near Gweru. It's not a safari experience in the truest sense but it is well worth a detour for the experience.

Our next proper camp experience was at Miombo Lodge on the edge of Hwange National Park. This is a Lodge that has recently changed hands and the treehouses were undergoing renovation during our trip. That said I have rarely had a friendlier welcome and I would recommend this camp without hesitation - great food and atmosphere. One of it's best features is the waterhole just on the edge of the property and early in the morning we had a knock on the door from the owner to tell us that water buffalo were on their way to drink barely 200 yards from our room door - a very nice way to start the day!

Hwange itself we barely scratched the surface of as we were on a pretty tight schedule to see friends but it was much the same as Matopas - zebra, giraffe, lots of small game and herds of elephants. I should point out that we were self driving and self guiding and someone who knew the area better may well have seen more.

We rounded off the Zim leg with a short stay at the superb Elephant Camp in Victoria Falls - probably the highlight of the entire trip. It's an astoundingly high quality camp with fantastic lodging and world class food. Best of all was using the "bush shower" on our private veranda (complete with plunge pool) as the sun rose over the Zambezi and with the spray of the falls in the distance while a herd of wild Water Buffalo wandered through the bush just a few hundred meters away. And we did have a close encounter with a cheetah that most of our friends refuse to believe...!

We chose to set our own itinerary and travel independently through Zim and it was a pleasure and surprisingly easy. We paid in advance using Paypal and Bank Transfers to minimise costs and cash/bank risks in country. Travel throughout the country was on fairly well maintained and clearly signposted roads and we had very few issues with navigation although I wouldn't recommend driving at night. Fuel was reasonable and plentiful and everyone we met, from petrol station attendants to street vendors and lodge or park staff were friendly and polite. The food was of a high standard and fresh.

We didn't do a standard tour at any point in Zim so I can't comment on how organised trips and tourists are treated or what they are like but I would highly rate and recommend it for an independent safari traveller who is looking for a destination that isn't overrun and where you have more chance of seeing animals than other peoples backs!

Wonderful experience - loved every moment

We had nervous expectations of travel in Zimbabwe. However, from our arrival in Victoria Falls to the day we departed we
had nothing but positive experiences. This was largely based on the friendly, helpful and kind people we met along the way.
Zimbabweans are resilient. Despite the tough economic hardships they are experiencing they continue to find ways to keep their lives and their businesses operating and they do it with a sense of humour and a smile. We were encouraged by their endurance.
The weather was very hot on the Zambezi and rain was desperately needed. Our guide was a natural bush man - passionate about the flora, animals and birds. He kept us well informed on what we were seeing along the way and helped to educate us on the interactions of the wildlife in the ecosystem. We had plenty of bottled water, good healthy food and comfortable accommodations with warm water for showers and morning washes. Safety was a high priority with the guides and we felt safe both on land and in the canoes.
The highlight of the trip was sitting around the dinner table and to have the guide say 'don't move anyone' - as an elephant walked right past our table.
Our only concern was to see plastic waste on the river banks and to hear powerboats and generators - ruining the pristine nature of this beautiful wilderness area.

Amazingggggg & Breathtaking

I first went to Zim on the year 2011 the experience was of out of this world,friendly accommodative warm people..There is no such thing as poverty in Zim like they show on TV.i visited almost every corner where many tourists don't get to go and mixed with the locals. A place called Mbare(a flea market of its out style) ,the Chinoyi caves(natural caves beautiful)Lake kariba,flea market at Borrowdale one of the most expensive well maintained beautiful structural houses in Zimbabwe. I did not do the obvious "Lake kariba" the eastern region of Zimbabwe where you have mysterious mountains. I went to Zimbabwe from that year every year three times a year. The local food I couldn't stop eating. I have visited Harare in and out(from the city to the villages)went a braai in Bulawayo. Experience Zimbabwe as it is a great country with a rich culture and visit where not may goes.

To be quite honest you can never talk about Zimbabwe and not see my eyes popping. Its a country I will visit as many times. I suggests tourists start going into the depth of the country not only what is shown when you google.

For plus I can write that park is almost empty. You can trade the price because there is not so many people. But if you would like to see many different animals you can be disappointed. In Zimbabwe every park has something different, so you have to choosen what is interesting for you.

Mana has no dearth of wildlife, and it ticks all the boxes as a great safari destination

Zimbabwe is probably southern Africa's most diverse country, in terms of its landscapes and national parks. Incredible Highlands exist along the eastern border. There are vast wilderness areas in the north and west, including Hwange, Lake Kariba and the Zambezi river valley. In the south east, the country's lowest point, there is Gonarezhou National Park, which is bordered by vast wildlife conservancies. Victoria Falls is the crowning jewel in the far north west. All these areas are home to vast populations of wildlife. The best parks to go on Safari and have a chance to see some, or even all of the big five, include Hwange, Mana Pools and Gonarezhou. All these parks are well maintained and have vast road networks, as well as a multitude of accommodation venues, ranging from comfortable self catering options to 5 star lodges. Zimbabwe is renowned for its professional guides, who have to go through a rigid training period that lasts no less than four years and involves hands on practical application. This makes Zimbabwe an amazing place to go on a walking safari. Overall Zimbabwe has so much to offer the safari entusiast!

Southern African Safaris

We didn't have a safari in Zimbabwe. We were there to see Victoria Falls and stayed at the Victoria Falls Hotel. There was sight seeing on the Zambezi where we saw many animals. Our safaris were in South Africa at Kirkman's Kamp in the Sabe Sands area and in Botswana in the Okavanga Delta at Eagle Island Camp and Kwai River Camp. Our daughter's family took a safari in November of 2010 in South Africa's Sabe Sands at Elephant Plain Camp and were thrilled with everything . We all saw all the big 5 animals and many more.If my husband were well we'd doing it again.

A beautiful country being slowly crushed by one man's intransigence

While I wasn't in Zim for wildlife, what we saw was fantastic. The weather was perfect, the scenery stunning. As you would expect the only issues were those which could be traced from the economic situation.

It all remarkably unspoiled at the moment.

Beautiful country, wildlife and culture

I didn't stay in Zimbabwe very long. We stayed right outside of Victoria Falls and the town was really interesting. It's completely different from anything you could ever imagine! The town was a poor area, but there was a lot of surrounding land that had incredible scenery and wildlife. The weather was hot, humid and rainy. We camped in tents, which was an adventure too with all the wildlife living around us (monkeys, bugs, etc). We went rafting down the Zambezi River which was a BLAST and also visited Victoria Falls of course. Our guide, named Pastor, was great. We had a blast with him. We traveled in a big passenger van, but there was only 4 of us including Pastor so we had a lot of room. The food was amazing. On our last night, we went a restaurant called The Boma. The food, dancing, and entertainment was incredible.